I jokingly titled a recent post “The most wonderful time of the year”.  However, that is a good description of early April in Korea.  I am not referring to the sunken naval ship, the slightly increased risk of war and the much higher risk of any such war going nuclear, mind you!  No, I am referring to the wild variety of mountain flowers, warm days and cool nights.  This is a great time to be in Korea!

On Sunday morning, I went to Jinhae to check out it’s famous cherry blossom festival.  My verdict: Jinhae is always a beautiful and quiet little town, the blossoms make it other-worldly, but wait until next weekend as they are not even close to their peak yet.

First, I went to a mountainous area that I had first visited twelve years ago with friends.  The trees were black and a little grim.  Because of the rain, I had at first thought the blossoms had been washed away.  Further exploration convinced me that they hadn’t bloomed yet.  The flowers were better in town, even though that was at only a slightly lower altitude.

After some time in town, I went to the Naval academy.  Visitors next weekend might enjoy better blossoms but will not gain entrance to the academy.

This little guy was guarding a corner of the museum, which is full of Yi soon-shin relics and information.

The azaleas are also just coming into bloom.  Geoje Island looks great – From the Chosun Ilbo: